Heiress

Charlotte Allen sat down on her bed. "But how" she thought, "How could I be adopted?" She lay there looking at the faded picture in the silver frame. She saw the reflection of her tear streaked face. "So you're my family." she said, half expecting to hear answering giggles and calls of "Charlotte". "Charlotte." she sat up and looked around for her Mother's thick black hair or her Father's large nose, but it was only her aunt knocking on the bedroom door. "Come in Auntie Ella," she said icily. When her aunt and adoptive mother came in she noticed dark tear streaks running down her aunt's cheek, like the last trickles of a thundering waterfall. Ella's expression was one of pity and pain as she looked at her niece. "Auntie Ella," said Charlotte with less emphasis on the "aunt" this time, "What's wrong?" Her aunt looked at her and sighed, "Honey, I'm sorry. I should have told you sooner, I still love you as much as ever, maybe even more if that is possible." Charlotte smiled, glancing once again at the picture she asked, "So what did happen to them anyway, my family I mean." Her aunt was taken aback, "That's a lot of news for one day. Do you really want to know?" Charlotte nodded.

"Well, it happened when you were very young, not yet three years old. Your Father, my brother, decided that he would take the family on a road trip to New York City. At the last moment your mother decided that it wouldn't be good for you to be breathing in all that polluted city air when you were so used to the clean suburban air. They left you with me along with toys, clothes, hugs, kisses, and lots of careful instructions for me. The next day the hospital called with the news. They were in a major car accident. When I got off the phone I started to cry. You saw me crying and then you started to cry. We both cried for hours with no end in sight. Your Mother, Father, brother, and sisters were all buried together. All of their money was given to charity since none of them had a will. I adopted you and you've been here ever since, nine years and counting."

Charlotte looked up at her aunt, adoringly. All this afternoon she had been mad at her aunt for not telling her about the adoption sooner, but Ella had taken her in. She should not be angry, she should be grateful. "You didn't have to adopt me. You loved me more than any mother ever could. You let me live on your... earnings." (She was about to say "meager" because Ella worked only if she got a job. Right now they were okay because she was sewing for a wedding party.) "I'm sorry that I got mad at you, Auntie Mom" Ella smiled, "Goodnight, honey."

"Charlotte, Charlotte dear, wake up someone is here to see you." Charlotte sat up sleepily. She looked at her alarm clock. 9:52! How had she slept so late? And who was here to see her? It couldn't be Allie, her best friend in the whole wide world who had 12 messages on her answering machine from Charlotte about last night, because Allie usually sleeps until 10:30 on weekends and in the summer. Her mind buzzing with these questions Charlotte walked down stairs.

She paused on the landing to yawn loudly. Suddenly, she noticed a tall man in an expensive looking suit and shiny leather shoes holding a brief case. He stood next to Auntie Ella who looked small and helpless beside him. Charlotte self-consciously straightened out her worn striped P.J.s and smiled nervously. "Hello, Charlotte." said the man in a deep, booming voice. "I am Robert Yorker, attorney of Mabel Tolkand. Do you know who she is?" Brow furrowed in thought Charlotte said, "I think that I have heard the name. Hmm..." She trailed off looking around the living room for something that might spark her memory. Her gaze fell upon her aunt's magazine. On the cover was a captioned picture of a beautiful woman with bright blue eyes and a radiant smile. "Isn't she a Broadway actress?" Charlotte said, triumphantly. "She was a very famous one. She recently passed on. Would you like to read her will?"

Charlotte was completely confused. "With all due respect, sir, why is her will my business?" Mr. Yorker turned slowly to Ella. "Do you tell her nothing of her past?" Auntie Ella blushed, her face redder than a piece of her famous cherry pie. "I just told about the adoption yesterday. I didn't want to spring it all on her at once." Angrily Mr. Yorker spoke, "What have you been telling her these past nine years. Don't answer that..." "But..." They started hollering so loudly that Charlotte was sure that Allie would wake up across town, look at her clock, see that it was to early, and try to fall back to sleep. Obviously, Mr. Yorker and Ella had met long before. "Excuse me" she said, "Excuse me," a little bit louder this time. "EXCUSE ME WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON HERE!?" she yelled. "Charlotte, please, you'll wake the neighbors." said Auntie Ella. Charlotte stared at her like she was insane. As if any neighbors who had been sleeping still were. "Of course, we'll tell you what's happening." said Mr. Yorker as he smoothed his no longer crisp suit. Ella also unruffled her dress. "Ms. Mabel Tolkand was your Mother's cousin."

"WHAT!? I'm related to a Broadway star?" Ella quietly said, "Her will reads 'All of my estate will go to my dear Cousin, Lauren Tolkand.' Your Mother's maiden name was Tolkand." Mr. Yorker continued, "You are the last remaining blood relative of Mrs. Lauren Tolkand Allen, before marriage Lauren Tolkand, therefore you are the heiress to Ms. Tolkand's estate."

Charlotte just stood there, thinking quietly. This is so great! Auntie Ella and I are going to be rich! HIP, HIP, HOORAY! "So what's the inheritance?" she asked. "You will receive millions of dollars in cash as well as The Tolkand Mansion and Mabel's summer house in Florida." Dollar $ign$ $parkled in Charlotte'$ eye$. KA CHING! Visions of parties and sleepovers paraded across her mind. "Where's the mansion?" Ella inquired. "Oh, it's right here, in upstate New York." replied Mr. Yorker. Then he smiled at the looks of excitement on the ladies faces. "Can we see it?" both Ella and Charlotte asked at once. "Let's go."

They all piled into the attorney's BMW and had been driving for less than ten minutes when Mr. Yorker stopped the car. "We're here." he said. Charlotte stepped out. She saw the address, 638 Tolkand Rd. Waller, New York. This was a dream, it must be. "Somebody pinch me!" she said aloud. She felt a sharp pain in her arm. "OW!" She looked down to find a mosquito lunching on her forearm. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you that the mosquitoes are really bad in the summer." called Mr. Yorker from the front door. Auntie Ella beckoned her to come. Hurriedly, Charlotte rushed over, looking at the rolling green landscape as she ran. Mr. Yorker turned the key in the lock and opened the door. "Ladies, welcome to your new home."

Charlotte and Ella stepped inside the house. They were in a huge entry hall, complete with crystal chandeliers that seemed to hover in midair like shimmering clouds, and a marble tiled floor. The slight gust of wind that had come from the opened door seemed frighteningly loud and out of place as it rushed against the sparkling crystal drops on the chandeliers, making them chime softly. "Whoa." said Charlotte in awe. "Whoa" she was answered. She looked up she could barely see the ceiling, it was so high. She must have heard her echo. "Shall we proceed?" asked Mr. Yorker, coming in and closing the door behind him. "Follow me." Interestingly, he did not echo.

Mr. Yorker began in a very tour-guide-like voice as they stepped into the next room. "This is the Grand Hallway. From here one can get to any branch of the house. There is the stairway to the servants' quarters. Down that corridor are the seven guest bedrooms. Here is the passage to the indoor pool and spa. Also out that way is the deck and outdoor pool. There's the entrance to the smaller bedroom suite. Up that staircase is the dance floor. And the large suite is down that hall." He said, gesturing toward each place as he spoke. "And Charlotte, this will be your favorite part of the house, The Fun Floor."

He led them to a staircase which led down to the basement. When they got down, they were in an arcade room, with pinball, air hockey, pac man, and lots more. "Cool!" exclaimed Charlotte. Mr. Yorker went into the next room, a movie theater with cable hook-ups for every imaginable game system, which were all stored in a cupboard. All Charlotte could do was stare, open-mouthed. The next room was a ropes course and a trapeze. There was a fun house room, an ice cream bar, an indoor volley ball court, a skate park, and a CD room. Then, they came to what Mr. Yorker called the "Tech Room". All the latest fun technology was stuffed into the room. There were flying chairs, robotic butlers, and so much more. "And now, the big finale..." said Mr. Yorker with a smile. They walked into a room where the entire floor was a moon bounce. "Wow!" said Charlotte. "I thought she was an old lady. How did she have all of this cool stuff?" Mr. Yorker sighed, "She wasn't old at all, barely forty. She had a daughter with a long dead husband. But, six years ago, her daughter, Emily, just disappeared. It was only one week after they moved into the house. She was only eight years old. No one knows where she went. This stuff was all for Emily."

Spooked by this story, nobody spoke. Finally, Mr. Yorker said, "Shall we go back upstairs and finish the tour." The others nodded silently.

Mr. Yorker was about to show them the smaller suite, the one where they decided Ella would sleep, when Charlotte realized that she really had to go to the bathroom. "Um, Mr. Yorker, do you know where the bathroom is?" He laughed, pointing down a passage he said, "It is right down there. Do you mind if I show your aunt her bedroom?" Charlotte shook her head as she ran to the bathroom.

She went in the bathroom and closed the door. Quickly, she sat down on the toilet and did her business. She washed her hands and was about to walk out when she heard a voice, "Flush the toilet, Charlotte." Charlotte looked down; indeed she had forgotten to flush the toilet. "Cool," she thought, "It tells you to flush. It must be one of those 'Techno Toilets'." The voice spoke again. "Uh, I am so not the voice of an automatic toilet. Gross!" Charlotte looked around, "Who said that?" she asked, frightened. "Charlotte, it is me, Emily. Emily Tolkand. I need you to help me."

Charlotte couldn't say anything. She held the gold plunger in her hand. "Talk, but if you're not who you say you are," she held the plunger up for emphasis, "I'm ready." Charlotte heard a laugh, "Oh, I'm really scared now. You're going to kill me with a toilet plunger. Anyway, let me explain. I disappeared six years ago and no one knows where I went. There's a mini curse on the house and I'm trapped in the walls of the house. I'm fourteen years old and single, can you believe that no cute boys get trapped in these walls. Listen, I can't talk to you now. Meet me in the little towel closet at the end of your suite. You'll know what I'm talking about. I'll be waiting. Tootles."

Charlotte would have stood there, dumbstruck, for hours if she hadn't heard her aunt calling her, "Come on Charlotte, were going to see your suite next." Charlotte unlocked the door and hurried out. "Sorry it took me so long." Ella said, "That's okay. What made you stay in for so long?" Charlotte hesitated, "Uh... cool new 'Techno Toilet'."

Mr. Yorker brought them up to the larger of the two suites, Charlotte's room, and opened the French doors. Inside was a long hallway, with tons of rooms leading off either side. The first room they came to was the dressing room. It was a large square room with three walls painted blue with yellow polka dots. The whole fourth wall was covered in mirrors. Two mannequins were standing in the corner, waiting to be draped with clothing. "After you move I'll have someone tailor them so they are near to exact replicas of you." said Mr. Yorker. Off of this room was a closet of the same size with empty golden hangers all hung neatly on bars. Leading them back through the dressing room, Mr. Yorker brought the group to the very contemporary bathroom which had a bathtub the size of a small pool and a shower almost as large. The toilet was separated by a tinted glass pocket door. Then came the bedroom, which Ella thought was "made for a kid". The ceiling was high with a loft; the bed was bouncy; the pillows were extra fluffy; there was a huge stereo next to the bed; and a giant TV screen covered one wall. Mr. Yorker then pointed out a few other rooms like a sauna, an elevator to all levels, and a little towel closet.

They continued on the tour, but Charlotte wasn't really paying attention. All she could think about was getting away to talk to Emily. She had already gone to the bathroom. What other excuses were there? Oh! Interrupting Auntie Ella as she gawked over the indoor pool Charlotte said, "Ohmigod. I left my um... thing in my room. I'll go get it. You guys keep going on the tour. See ya. Peace." Charlotte ran out of the room and up the stairs to her room. She flung open the double doors and hurried down the hall. She stepped into the little closet and softly said, "Emily?"

She turned on the light. "What took you so long?" said Emily's voice. Charlotte told her that her best excuse had already been used and it took her a while to make up a new one. "Oh. Well, I forgot about it before but the echo when you walked in to the entry hall is tied into this." Charlotte looked in the direction of the voice like it was crazy. "Would you please answer my questions? Number one; how can you talk to me through walls? Number two; why did only I echo in that entry hall?" She finished, out of breath. "Let me explain. That hall is very special. Only the owner of the house echoes in that entry way. But, owning this house, incredibly cool as it may be, isn't necessarily a good thing..." Emily trailed off. "And why is that?" asked Charlotte. "I was getting there. As I said in the bathroom, there is a half curse on this house, the curse of loneliness. The one-hundredth time that any loved one of the owner comes in the house, they, they...disappear. Into these walls. And they can't talk to you for on whole week after they are captured. It happened to me, to my aunt, to my cousins, and soon the house will take your friends and family." she finished.

Charlotte was scared and overwhelmed but she said anyway, "But you didn't answer me. How can you talk to me? And, can I see you? What do you look like?" Emily sighed, "I can talk to you because you own the house. You are the heiress. You can see me. I look like a fairy-like version of my real body. I'm small, with tiny wings. I have thick blonde hair and brown eyes. Does that answer your question?" Charlotte nodded.

"Is there any way to stop this, any way at all?" Charlotte asked, worried. "Well, there is..." began Emily. "Oh of course, we can sell the house. Or we could destroy it. Or we cou..." said Charlotte. Emily cut her off exasperatedly, "Neither of those would work. One can only live in this house if it is passed down to them. The house was passed down from my Great-Great-Grandma Melanie, to my Great-Grandpa Frankie, to my Grandma Ashley, to my Mom, to you. The house is not, and cannot be, for sale. If you destroy the house, all of the people trapped inside will die..." Charlotte once again cut in, "Then how can I help you?" Emily sighed, "...But when the house was cursed 106 years ago, the young slave girl, Hannah, who traveled with the evil wizard, took pity on my great-grandfather and made sure the curse was breakable. The wizard found out and now she's in here too. Oh, by the way, no one ages once they are trapped inside the walls. An eternal youth and immortality spell was a gift from a captured Indian magic master." she said.

"Just tell me how to break the curse." said Charlotte, obviously frightened and annoyed.

"Ultimately, you want to mix a potion to free the people in the walls. It's called the Curse Crack. This will free all of the fairies, as well as return them to their own time periods. They will go back and will be the same age as they were when they disappeared, except for the ones who would still be alive today. The ones like me will be the age that they have aged to while inside the walls. I'll be fourteen! The trick is finding the ingredients for the spell. They are all over the world. We can give you anything that we have in here that you might need, like a speedy flying spell for getting the ingredients. You can receive these things through plumbing systems. I'm truly sorry, but you may lose a friend or two along the way. Also, you must find a way to enter the walls. Once in, you must sprinkle a pinch of the potion on to each person, it comes out with a sand-like texture. Go into the bathroom across the hall. The potion instructions will be in the sink along with a pre-made flying potion. I suggest you get started on the Curse Crack tonight; one-hundred may seem like a lot, but believe me it takes less than one week. When you leave the mansion you will have eight hours to get back before the house automatically takes someone you love. Oh yeah, you can't tell any one about this." She finished.

"Charlotte, did you find your... thing?" called Aunt Ella.

Charlotte panicked. "Uh... I found it. It was my sweater." said Charlotte, emerging from the closet as she took the sweater from around her waist.

"Good news," said Auntie Ella, "We're moving in today."

"What? I mean, Auntie Ella why don't you direct the moving from in here and I'll organize everything else. I wouldn't want you to get tired." She then added under her breath, "Or disappear."

Her aunt smiled, "That is so nice, sweetie. Thank you, I will stay here. But I'm laying down on the first couch or bed that comes in." They laughed.

"You go ahead." said Charlotte, "I'll be right down." Auntie Ella kissed her and then walked down the hall and down the steps. "I won't let this house take you...Mom."

She walked into the bathroom and found the potion directions in the sink. Penciled at the bottom of the paper was a note that said, "You can take one of us with you in a jar, for moral support and guidance. Bring the jar with you to the Grand Hallway. You will receive further instructions there. Here is a list and brief description of each of us. Think it over and meet us at the Grand Hallway with your decision. Signed, Emily."

Charlotte took the paper and the spell and hid them in her jeans pocket. She walked down stairs and realized she had a move to direct. She would not have time to choose a companion for tonight. She suddenly had an idea. She called to the attorney, "Mr. Yorker, would you be in charge of the move for me? Please." She put on a puppy-dog pout. "Fine. You win... Fido." He smiled. "Thanks," said Charlotte.

Charlotte went down into the moon bounce room and lay down on the bouncy floor. She held the list of people trapped in the walls in her hand along with the directions for the Curse Crack. She read the spell. "To break the curse one must be brave. The road is long; the dangers grave. Establish truths; face your fears, for if you don't this house will take your loved and dear. Nightmares are real, foes unite; but press on until friends and family are all right."

Next were the ingredients with where to find them and directions for the spell. "The first ingredient is a piece of the house. That I can get tonight. Also tonight I can get one Canadian Cauldron. They sell them at Collin's Canadian Creations, on Bells Street. Then I can also get 1 pound of fresh German Delk. Cool, I've never been to Germany. It says that the Delk grows in Maviado Park in Fransed, Germany. For my first night I had better take Emily. Then I only have eight more ingredients to get."

Later that night, after Aunt Ella was asleep and the workers and Mr. Yorker had left; Charlotte crept, with an empty jar of peanut butter, in a cat-like manner downstairs to the Grand Hallway. She couldn't have slept if she had wanted to; she was so nervous that something would go wrong. "Hello." she called softly. "Oh, good, you're here." said a voice. Charlotte relaxed a little, "Hi Emily. I figured out what I can get tonight. For my first night I choose to take you, Emily, with me on my mystical travels." Emily's voice replied, "Good choice. Bring the jar to the bathroom where I met you. Place it so the opening is under the faucet. Once I slip in, you must quickly close the jar. Let's go." This was done successfully, and Charlotte walked outside with the old jar. Emily said, "I haven't been outside in so long. It's beautiful out here. Anyway, back to business. You must engage the flying potion. To do this, drink it and recite after me, 'Aveset Wingid'." Charlotte repeated the words.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then suddenly Charlotte, holding Emily's jar in her left hand, the potion directions in her other pocket, and a large garbage bag to carry all the stuff in her right hand, felt the ground pull away from the soles of her sneakers. She was in the air, flying! She soon discovered that all she had to do was say her desired destination and she would be carried there, magically.

"Collin's Canadian Creations." said Charlotte. She and Emily flew high in the sky for ten minutes before they began their descent. Charlotte quickly ran in, found her cauldron, left $30 on the counter, and left. "Fransed, Germany." said Charlotte as she put the cauldron in the garbage bag. They lifted high into the sky.

After many hours, Emily said, "Do you still have the bottle that the potion was in?" Charlotte replied, "Yes." Emily continued, "Then take it out and press on the cap twice. This should activate an invisibility feature so you won't be seen flying into Germany. Also, press the little button on the cap and say, 'German'. This will allow you to speak and read in German, if necessary." Charlotte did as she was told. This must have worked, for when they landed near a sign that read, "Welcome to Fransed, Germany," no one looked surprised to see a flying girl.

Charlotte said "Maviado Park." She lifted up of the ground and asked Emily how much longer they had to get back to the house. The trip to Germany took three hours on turbo speed. They had about four-and-a-half hours left. They landed quickly and Charlotte hurried over to a sign that said "Fresh delk" Charlotte picked delk until the garbage bag was full. She checked in with Emily. They only had a little less than four hours to get home!

Quickly, Charlotte said, "Tolkand-er-Allen Mansion, in New York." She felt the ground leave her feet for the last time that night.

The flight was long and tense. Charlotte kept asking for the time. Emily was getting air sick. Suddenly, Emily shouted, "There's the Empire State Building!" They both were overcome with weariness, but the sight made Charlotte dance in a circle. They were going to make it home. Her friends would be safe! "Ahhhh..." Charlotte looked towards to noise. It was Emily! She had slipped out of Charlotte's grasp and was falling to her doom!

Charlotte thought fast. "Emily Tolkand." she said, immediately. She felt herself skid to a halt. She suddenly began to fall down. It took her a long time; Emily had a big head start, but Charlotte reached the little fairy in time. "You saved my life. If I could, I would hug you." said Emily. "It's no big deal. You would have done the same thing for me." Charlotte replied. "Oh no! We have only twenty minutes to get back home." said Emily, frantically. "Tolkand Mansion." Charlotte said.

They were less than ten minutes away from home, when they heard a beep. Emily checked the timer. Instead of numbers, it said in digital letters, "Bye Allie." Charlotte's throat tightened. "Bye Allie." She felt a tear streaming down her cheek. "You can still save her." Emily said, trying to cheer her up. After six minutes of silence and tears on Charlotte's part, they reached the mansion. Charlotte broke off a piece of brick from the wall as they went inside.

She set the cauldron down in her room and placed the brick and a pound of delk in it. Before she had gone upstairs, some fairy had given her an invisibility shield to conceal the cauldron. She didn't care; her best friend was trapped. She would have to face the truth alone. She knew that Allie ran away all the time, her parents wouldn't get really worried for at least five days. She put on her pajamas and got into her giant bed. "Oh, Allie." She cried into her pillow.

The next day, Auntie Ella went into the city for the day and left Charlotte alone. "Char, are you okay? Are you going to lie in bed in your pajamas all day?" Charlotte nodded, trying to make her aunt believe that everything was fine and dandy. "All right then if you need me, call my cell phone. I love you. Bye."

Charlotte wanted to get the potion done as soon as possible. She couldn't stand not having Allie! She looked, not really taking in the information, at the potion directions to find that the next ingredients were three Hawaiian coconuts, four grapes, and two Indian Orchids. The orchids were grown in only one garden in the entire world. The garden was called The Garden of Litho and was guarded by a cobra. The list also said the all magic was abated within five feet of the garden. She robotically looked at the list of fairies. She found one named Tu-an, an Indian snake charmer. The list said that Tu-an was an adviser to the second owner of the house, Melanie Tolkand. I'll take him this afternoon. She then lied down and stared at the ceiling.

"Charlotte, snap out of it." It was Emily. "You have to get going. Your aunt will be back in nine hours. You've been asleep for three hours. Come on." Charlotte sighed, "I don't care. Allie's gone." she said, sitting up, "My life has no meaning." She flopped back down on the bed. "Charlotte, you can save her. You can save hundreds of other people. And you're just going to give up, you selfish brat." Charlotte was staring angrily at the wall. "You think I'm selfish? Well how's this for giving? I'm ready. Let's go right now. I choose Tu-an, The Snake Charmer. I'll meet him in the downstairs bathroom in ten minutes with the peanut butter jar. I expect to see a flying spell with him." She said, fuming. Emily laughed. "Now that's what I like to hear."

Charlotte put on her clothes; ran down to the bathroom; got Tu-an and the flying potion; and ran out the door. "Aveset Wingid." she said. Quickly she was lifted in to the air.

"Hawaii." said Charlotte. She looked at the little timer in Tu-an's jar, seven hours and fifty-six minutes. "So," she said to the little fairy, "What's your story?" The snake charmer smiled, he was an old, bald, black man. He looked like he just wanted to be free. "I am Tu-an. I am friend of Melanie. She was great leader in community. People go to for help." Charlotte looked at him oddly. "I am sorry if you no understand." he said. "My English no good, even after all these years." he said sadly. "Your English is great. Keep going." said Charlotte encouragingly. "Well, she had lived here for but one week when I go poof. I was running in to talk to her about a serious problem when, all of sudden, I am spinning. Suddenly, I look at hands and notice how small. I look in mirror in hall and see me in fairy form. I then sucked in wall and trapped." He finished. Charlotte now understood what it was like to be trapped in there. If this man had lived a normal life, he probably would have changed the world. Knowing that she could help people change the world for the greater good, made Charlotte very happy. "Let's enjoy the ride." She said, turning on the invisibility feature. Tu-an nodded.

"Aloha, dudes." Charlotte sat up. She must have fallen asleep. She looked down to see a huge beach-side pool with hundreds of teens grooving to the beat of a DJ. They were in Hawaii! "Aloha!" sang Charlotte. Soon after, they landed on the ground near a towering palm tree. Near the top was a group of coconuts. "Top of that tree." Charlotte said, pointing. They were lifted of the sandy beach straight to the bunch of coconuts. Charlotte grabbed three and put them in her garbage bag. "Now, we're off to The Garden of Litho." They soared into the sky and headed eats to India.

Hours later, they were soaring in the deep azure Indian sky. Suddenly, they began to drift downward until they had landed on a green field, near a stonewall. On the wall was gold sign that said, "Garden of Litho". Slithering outside the garden was a monstrous cobra.

"Tu-an," said Charlotte, freaking out, "Do your thing." Tu-an pulled out a tiny flute and began to play. The snake looked hypnotized. Charlotte put the jar down and tiptoed over to the gate of the garden. At the clicking of the gate the snake hissed loudly, but Tu-an played louder and the cobra was, once again, mesmerized. Charlotte slipped inside and ran over to one of the many patches of orchids. She carefully cut two, taking care not to hurt them. Again, she cracked open the gate and slipped through. Motioning for Tu-an to keep playing. Taking two tubes of water out of her pocket, Charlotte slipped the flowers into them. She picked up Tu-an's jar and whispered the words, "The Tolkand Mansion". She heard the notes of a flute. "Tu-an, "said Charlotte, "Stop doing your thing."

They arrived home with plenty of time before Aunt Ella and before the timer ran out. Tu-an was safely returned to the walls. Charlotte grabbed a bunch of grapes from the kitchen and the new ingredients were added to the invisible cauldron.

Charlotte sat down on her bed. She might as well get started on the last leg of the Curse Crack. She looked at the potion directions. Next on the ingredients list were four diablor leaves, Brazilian leaves found only in the Amazon, postage stamps from six different countries, and thread from clothing from the original location of the designer store, Cloé and Juliette.

Charlotte took out the fairy list from her pocket. She scanned it until she found a suitable companion for her next adventure. "Simone Alaver," she read, "French designer and model. She was the designer of Mabel Tolkand's prom dress. They became friends after." Charlotte finished. "A designer would come in handy in Paris." she thought. She lied down to fall asleep, for she wanted to finish the potion that night.

"Charlotte, I'm home." called Auntie Ella, "How was your day?" Charlotte, who had been awoken by her call, quickly rose to her feet and straightened her hair out. "I'll be right down." she called. She glanced at the clock, 6:49. She wanted to get out by 8:30. She knew that her aunt went to bed at 8:00. "Auntie Ella," she called, "Let's go out to dinner at Sally's Southern Soul. I'm craving her special fried chicken." Her aunt called back, "Sure thing, Partner."

They had a great dinner. On the way home Charlotte belched with fried chicken breath and the whole car smelled good. When they got home Ella was very tired and she went straight to bed. After saying good-night, Charlotte walked down stairs to the Grand Hallway after grabbing the garbage bag and the peanut butter jar. "I pick Simone Alaver. Could she bring lots of French money? We need to buy clothes from Cloé and Juliette. Thanks. Meet you in the bathroom."

Charlotte went into the bathroom and to get Simone, to find that she had brought her own leopard print beanbag which she sat down on. Charlotte whispered the magic words along with the word "Amazon". They began to rise into the air. Charlotte looked over to the prissy little fairy with disgust. Simone was sitting on her beanbag with her nose in the air. Charlotte had nothing better to do, so she fell asleep for the third time that day.

They arrived in the Amazon and Charlotte immediately looked for leaves that matched the picture on the potion directions. They seemed to grow everywhere! It took her no time at all to find four diablors. Then, with a swift glance at the timer, six hours and eight minutes, she said, "Paris".

After a few hours, they arrived in Paris, the City of Lights. After asking for directions many times, they finally reached Cloé and Juliette's studio. Charlotte looked up at the prestigious building. "It's now of never." she said. They walked in and Charlotte said to the clerk, hiding Simone from his view, "What is your least expensive article of clothing?" The man stood up and led them to a purse on display for one thousand-two hundred euros. Charlotte soon discovered that this was about one thousand-four hundred- fifty-six dollars! "Umm... I'll take it." she said, pulling out the thousands of euros and counting out twelve hundred. This took an incredibly long time. When she was done they only had five hours and seventeen minutes left on the timer. "Italy." Charlotte said.

"Thanks for the help." Charlotte said, sarcastically, to Simone. "Oh, you are quite welcome." She replied. Charlotte pressed the language button and said, "Italian". They soon landed in Italy where Charlotte asked for directions to the post office. She bought stamps and they left. They repeated this process four more times in, China, Israel, Romania, and Mexico. By this time, there was only one hour and thirty-two minutes on the timer. They might make it! Knowing, they had postage stamps at home, Charlotte hurriedly said, "The Tolkand Mansion." And they were off.

After about thirty-five minutes they were soaring above South Carolina. Charlotte was getting anxious, they only had about one hour left. Even on turbo speed, they might not make it. Why did the house have to be in upstate New York? Somewhere over Maryland, she heard a beep. The timer had run out! She looked over to it. As she had suspected, it said "Bye Ella". Charlotte started to cry. "It will be all right, Charlotte." Charlotte looked up. It was Simone talking. "You'll save her. All you have left to do is put everything in the cauldron and mix it up. Your Auntie Ella had always been there for you, now it's time for you to help her." Charlotte was very impressed at this insight, especially from such a stuck-up person. Charlotte gave a half smile, wiping her tears, "Thanks Simone."

When they landed at home, Charlotte returned Simone to the walls and took a stamp from her aunt's wallet. She silently walked into Auntie Ella's room where she knew her aunt had been less than one hour ago. "Don't worry, I'll save you Mom." She hastened upstairs to make the potion. Dumping the ingredients that she had gathered that night into the potion, and putting her new purse next to her bed, Charlotte picked up the Curse Crack instructions. "Curse Crack, don't fail me now."

Charlotte read the first few steps in making the potion. "Gather ingredients. Check. Put ingredients in cauldron. Check. Add one cup of cold water. Not check." Charlotte lugged the cauldron into her bathroom and went down to the kitchen to find a measuring cup. She came back up and poured the water in with the rest of the ingredients. "Check. Stir ingredients together. She, again, went down to the kitchen and brought back up a giant wooden spoon. She stirred. "Check. Blow a kiss into the cauldron." Charlotte did so. Suddenly a red lip-print appeared in the cauldron. "Check. Say the magic words." Charlotte looked all around the paper, but she could not find the magic words. "Abracadabra!" that didn't work. "Hocus-pocus!" This brought no luck, either. "Please and thank you." said Charlotte, completely baffled. Suddenly the cauldron began to spin. "Please and thank you were the magic words?" said Charlotte over the howling wind that was coming from the cauldron. "I can live with that, as long as it worked." Charlotte's hair was blowing around her face; she could barely keep her feet on the ground. Yet, the entire potion was staying in the cauldron. All of a sudden, there was a poof and everything was silent.

After a minute, Charlotte took a deep breath and slowly walked towards the cauldron. She peeked inside to see the cauldron full, almost to the top, of reddish dust. She had done it! This was the Curse Crack! "Hold on one second there, Charlotte." she said to herself. "You still have to get in to the walls." She knew that she couldn't take the cauldron in with her, it wouldn't fit. Thinking fast, she ran downstairs and brought up three packages of zip-lock bags. She sat down on the bathroom floor. She took a pinch of the dust and put it in a bag. Then she sealed the bag closed. She looked at the list of fairies and discovered that there were four hundred-twenty seven fairies. So, she got to work on making four hundred-twenty six more bags of dust.

When she finally finished, she noticed that it was seven o'clock in the morning. She couldn't give up though. She had to find a way into the walls. She search and search, but her efforts were futile. "Emily, Auntie Ella, Allie, I have failed." she said, slumping against a wall. "Are you kidding?" It was Emily. "You have so not failed. Sometimes, you just have to ask for help." Charlotte poked her head out from between her knees. "Okay. Emily, do you know how I can get in?" Charlotte could tell Emily was smiling. "As a matter of fact, I do. Someone in here can make the walls farther apart from each other. That way, you'll have enough room to sprinkle dust on everyone. We'll also enlarge the drains everywhere. Just slip your self into one with the dust and you'll be in. To get out, just push yourself up through one. Give us one second... There. You should be able to get in, now. See you soon."

After a moment of just standing there, Charlotte darted upstairs. She grabbed the garbage bag from next to her bed; dumped all of the bags of dust into it; and, taking a deep breath, Charlotte plunged down the huge drain in the bathtub.

She landed on what she thought was the ceiling of the Grand Hallway. She heard a whirring of wings near her ear. She turned around. "Emily?" she asked. "That's me." said the little fairy. "Emily, I need your help. Fly around and tell all of the fairies to come here. Line them up so I can sprinkle the Curse Crack on them." Emily nodded and flew off.

Only minutes later, hundreds of fairies were lined up in front of Charlotte. Emily was helping her; she would open the bag and give it to Charlotte. Then Charlotte would dump the contents of the bag on some fairies head. As Emily had explained to Charlotte earlier, the fairies would only be free when every last on of them had had Curse Crack dust sprinkled on them. "Alright, would the first fairy please step-I mean fly-forward for sprinkling." said Charlotte. And so it went, fairy after fairy; bag after bag; hour after hour, until there were only five fairies left. "Here you go Simone, thanks for your insight." Charlotte said, sprinkling dust on the prissy fairy. "And Tu-an, I would have been snake food if not for you." said Charlotte giving him his share of Curse Crack. "Allie, Auntie Ella, I love you guys. Thanks for always being there for me." Charlotte said to the two mute fairies, as she sprinkled dust on them. "Emily, what would I ever do without you?" Charlotte said as she sprinkled the last bag of dust on the one fairy that had been her friend, counselor, and go-to peep for the last few days. "I don't know." said Emily, her usual fun, fourteen-year-old self. Charlotte smiled. "But, as much as we love you, get out of the walls. We can't be free with you in here. Oh, and go down to the Grand Hallway. You'll be seeing quite a sight. Tell us when you get there." Charlotte nodded as she pushed her self through the enlarged drain. The moment she was out, it and the rest of the house shrunk back to normal size. She ran down to the Grand Hallway and shouted, "Okay, I'm ready."

Hundreds of little orbs of light shot out of invisible holes in the walls of the Grand Hallway. Some shouted things like, "Thanks Charlotte", on their way past her. She felt so good inside. She suddenly noticed that her five friends hadn't come out. Then, five golden lit orbs, holding hands jumped out from the wall. As soon as they hit the ground, they became life-size humans. Simone, Tu-an, Emily, Allie, and Auntie Ella stood before Charlotte. "This calls for a group hug!" Allie said. So they did. "How do you guys know what happened?" Charlotte asked Allie and Aunt Ella. "Once we were captured, we gained full knowledge of everything that happened, even though we couldn't speak." said Auntie Ella. Charlotte was still confused, "I thought everyone went back to their time period, isn't Tu-an from about one hundred-thirty years ago?" Tu-an smiled. "I wanted to tell you something. You could have taken down that snake yourself. Believe in who you are, Charlotte. I take leave of you." There was a swirl of color and Tu-an became a ball of golden light. Charlotte stood there with a fourteen-year-old Emily, a forty-five-year-old Simone, her best friend, and her aunt. "Emily, would you like to live with us?" Auntie Ella asked out-of-the-blue. "I already have one adopted daughter, why not two?" Emily speechlessly smiled and nodded her head. "Allie, you had better call you parents. They'll start to get worried." said Auntie Ella. "I'm on it Ms. Allen." Allie replied. "How many times do I have to tell you, it's Ella?!" Ella said, smiling. Suddenly, they all heard the ring of a cell phone. Simone reached into her pocket. "Hello...This is she. Really? Yes... Yes...YES. Of course. Bye." Simone closed her phone. "That was Cloé and Juliette, the clothing designers. They have been trying to reach me for the past six years. Can you believe it? Anyway, they want me to work for them! I'm going to design Broadway costumes!" Being the girls that they were, they all shouted, "Eeeeeee!" Charlotte had an idea "Oh, you can move into our old house. Can't she Auntie Ella?" Ella's grin widened, "Of course. That's a great idea!"

Allie and Simone left and Ella, Charlotte, and Emily headed over to the adoption office in New York City. After much trouble and argument, Ella was handed the adoption papers. She signed and the three of them hugged. "Welcome to the family, Emily Lauren Tolkand-Allen." Emily had tears in her eyes, "Thanks..." she didn't know what to call her new mother. "Mom." finished Charlotte. Ella smiled, "Yes, honey, you can call me Mom."

The End